Pirate TV: 5 current swashbuckling favorites

TV’s bad boys and girls du jour seem to be naughty, nasty, haughty pirates. With Crossbones taking the week off to accommodate the Stanley Cup Final, we thought we’d review a few of the pirates you can find in current shows:

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1. Blackbeard, Crossbones (NBC)Actor: John MalkovichThe story: Edward Teach acts as an unofficial governor on the island of Santa Compana in 1729 and goes by the title “Commodore.” The island serves as home to pirates, outlaws and outcasts, as well as headquarters for Teach to spin his reputation as one of the West Indies’ most fearsome pirates.Official site:Crossbones

3. Captain Hook, Once Upon a Time (ABC) Actor: Colin O’DonoghueThe story: The legendary villain of J. M. Barrie’s classic Peter Pan, Hook is reimagined here as something of a hopeless romantic, with a rich backstory, a rather active love life and ongoing adventures with the fairy tale inhabitants of Storybrooke.Official site:Once Upon a Time

4. Salladhor Saan, Game of Thrones (HBO) Actor: Lucian MsamatiThe story: Saan is a longtime pirating associate of Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), the on-and-off Hand to throne-claimant Stannis Barratheon (Stephen Dillane). Saan can be relied upon for — well, not much if he won’t profit from it. That said, he does come through for Ser Davos more than once.Official site:Game of Thrones

5. Spirit Riders, Defiance (Syfy) Actors: Noah Danby, Tiio Horn and othersThe story: In the world of 2047, alien races have shared the planet with humans for over 30 years. The Spirit Riders are a gang of Irathient outlaws that once reaved through the Badlands, but then form an uneasy truce with humans and fellow aliens in the town of Defiance.Official site:Defiance

Any real or fictional pirates you think deserve TV treatment? Which film or TV pirates are your favorites?

Debbie Day, Community Contributor

Entertainment and lifestyle journalist Debbie Day is former editor-in-chief of Maxim.com and editor of the U.S. website for the film magazine Premiere. Her writing has appeared on Yahoo!, LATimes.com, LAMag.com and elsewhere, as well as in Maxim, Interview and other publications.